Matthew 13:8, 23
Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop – a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. He who has ears, let him hear.”
But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”
In my role as pastor I have counseled with dozens and dozens of married couples as they have gone through various times of conflict and struggle. And I almost always start with reminding them that, whatever the issue they are struggling with and however irreconcilable their differences seem to be, there is always hope.
I tell couples that for two reasons: first, because I believe God can do miracles in the human heart; and second, because I have seen those miracles happen in marriages.
Some 15 years ago a man met me in my office and confessed that he had done something that would probably destroy his marriage. He was honest and took responsibility for his actions but had to move out of his home for about six months not knowing if his wife would be willing to take him back. But in the mean time he also opened his heart to faith in Christ and began the process of spiritual growth and accountability.
Eventually, his wife offered him the gift of forgiveness, allowed him to come back home, and they began to work on their marriage together.
Some ten years later I had the great privilege of leading this couple through a renewal of their wedding vows that was a celebration of the hope and healing that can be experienced in Christ.
As I mentioned at the beginning of the week, today’s farmers can count on a 600 fold increase when they plant a field of corn. In Jesus’ day the expected yield may have been more in the 30 to 60 to 100 fold area, but the point is that the seed is wildly productive.
Who can begin to measure the harvest of just one gospel seed planted in one man’s heart? Who can begin to measure the harvest of one marriage reconciled and restored? Who can begin to measure the harvest of children who grow up in a family where Jesus is Lord?
Who can begin to measure the harvest as those children grow up understanding that God has called them to serve in his great and eternal kingdom? Who can measure the harvest of the generations of families that may grow from this family tree in the future?
Who can measure indeed?
But the one who received the seed that fell on good soil is the man who hears the word and understands it. He produces a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.
Praise the Good Farmer for the eternal and immeasurable growth of the gospel!
Pastor Brian Coffey
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